Yvonne Weekes (born 1958) is a British-born Montserratian writer, theater director, and educator. She was Montserrat's first director of culture before being forced to move to Barbados during the eruption of the

Soufrière Hills The Soufrière Hills are an active, complex stratovolcano with many lava domes forming its summit on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. After a long period of dormancy, the Soufrière Hills volcano became active in 1995 and has continued to ...

volcano in the 1990s. Her work deals with issues of displacement and isolation due to environmental and cultural forces beyond our control.

Early life and education

Weekes was born in London, England, in 1958, to parents from Montserrat. She grew up between the two countries, moving back to Montserrat in 1967. In 1973, she returned to the U.K. She attended university there, graduating with a degree in drama and English from

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

in 1980.

Career

After college, Weekes became a drama and English teacher in England. She also began working in theater and filmmaking, including with the

Black Audio Film Collective The Black Audio Film Collective (BAFC), founded in 1982 and active until 1998, comprised seven Black British and diaspora multimedia artists and film makers: John Akomfrah, Lina Gopaul, Avril Johnson, Reece Auguiste, Trevor Mathison, Edward Geo ...

on its project '' Handsworth Songs.'' She returned to Montserrat in 1987, where she taught English and founded the Rainbow Theatre Company, a troupe that traveled around the Caribbean. She produced and directed several plays with the company before its dissolution. Weekes was also appointed as the country's first director of culture. In 1995, Montserrat's central Soufrière Hills volcano began to erupt, setting off a period of activity that would continue for several years. As ash fell across the island, Weekes, who lived in the village of Cork Hill at the time, held out for as long as she could. In 1996, she fled to Barbados with her son, Nathan. In Barbados, Weekes began studying at the

University of the West Indies at Cave Hill University of the West Indies at Cave Hill is a public research university in Cave Hill, Barbados. It is one of five general campuses in the University of the West Indies system. It was the third campus to be established by the UWI System, follow ...

, where she eventually obtained a Ph.D. in 2016. She taught drama and worked as the theater arts coordinator at Barbados Community College, then became a lecturer at the

Errol Barrow Errol Walton Barrow (21 January 1920 – 1 June 1987) was a Barbadian statesman and the first prime minister of Barbados. Born into a family of political and civic activists in the parish of Saint Lucy, he became a WWII aviator, combat vete ...

Centre for Creative Imagination at the University of the West Indies. Weekes has advised and helped develop the theater arts syllabus for the

Caribbean Examinations Council The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) is an examination board in the Caribbean. It was established in 1972 under agreement by the participating governments in the Caribbean Community to conduct such examinations as it may think appropriate an ...

Writing

A writer of plays, prose, and poetry, Weekes was first published in ''Charting the Journey'', an anthology of black women writers, in 1988. In 2004, she released ''Madness'', a CD of spoken word poetry. After starting out as a personal project, Weekes' memoir ''Volcano'' was published in 2006 by

Peepal Tree Press Peepal Tree Press is a publisher based in Leeds, England which publishes Caribbean, Black British, and South Asian fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama and academic books. It was founded after a paper shortage in Guyana halted production of new bo ...

. It recounts the central role the Soufrière Hills volcano plays in the lives of Montserrat residents, and documents her experience during the eruption in the 1990s. It won her the

Frank Collymore Frank Appleton Collymore MBE (7 January 1893 – 17 July 1980) was a Barbadian literary editor, writer, poet, stage performer and painter. His nickname was "Barbadian Man of the Arts". He also taught for 50 years at Combermere School, where he ...

Literary Arts Endowment Award. In 2010, her play ''Blue Soap'' was published in an anthology of Caribbean female playwrights called ''Emancipation Moments.'' Weekes' first book of poems, ''Nomad'', was published by House of Nehesi Publishers in 2019. The poetry collection of “stubborn grit,” according to Montserratian writer George Irish, has also been called "a survivors’ handbook” by Jamaican performance artist A-dZiko Simba Gegele. The verses in the collection deal with displacement throughout her life as she shifted between England, Barbados, and Montserrat, which she describes as the place she feels most at home.

Selected works

* ''Volcano'' (2006) * ''Blue Soap'' in ''Emancipation Moments'' (2010) * ''Nomad'' (House of Nehesi Publishers, 2019) * ''Disaster Matters: Disasters Matter'', Editors Yvonne Weekes, Wendy McMahon (House of Nehesi Publishers, 2021) * ''Voices: Monologues & Dramatic Text for Caribbean Actors'', Editor (House of Nehesi Publishers, 2022)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weekes, Vyonne 1958 births Montserratian writers Montserratian women Caribbean women writers University of the West Indies alumni Academic staff of the University of the West Indies Black British women writers British people of Montserratian descent Women dramatists and playwrights Living people